


Fallout

by TvFan16



Series: Maggie & Jubal balance work and dating [4]
Category: FBI (TV 2018)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Friendship, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Injuries, Romance, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2020-10-05
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:33:54
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 16,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26701486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TvFan16/pseuds/TvFan16
Summary: Missing/added scenes from the episodeYou must have read the first two stories from ‘Maggie and Jubal balance work and dating’
Relationships: Maggie Bell/Jubal Valentine
Series: Maggie & Jubal balance work and dating [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1929145
Kudos: 12





	1. Chapter 1

Jubal and Isobel had heard the call that there was an agent down, Jubal wasn’t sure he could breath, all he could think was if Maggie was okay. He cared about all his team and wanted all of them to be safe but he couldn't help that his first thought was that he didn’t want it to be Maggie. They found out that it was Kristen that had been stabbed in the neck, both Jubal and Isobel headed straight to the hospital together. OA and Stuart travelled together to the hospital, another agent drove the spare suv back to the building. 

Maggie had been applying pressure to the wound until the paramedics arrived, they had told them that one person could ride in the ambulance with her so Maggie went with her with OA and Stuart right on the tail of the ambulance, they even pulled in to the hospital with the ambulance. The three agents walked with Kristen until the nurses stopped them 

“I'm sorry you guys can’t come any further, we will update you as soon as we can” 

Maggie went straight to the bathroom to wash the blood off her hands and she couldn't stop the tears that were falling. As soon as the blood was off her hands she went out to sit with OA and Stuart. It was only minutes until they heard Jubal and Isobel coming around the corner to them with Isobel speaking first 

“Guys what happened back there?” 

Maggie was hanging her head down as tears were still running down her cheeks, Jubal came over and sat down beside Maggie as Stuart and OA were beside each other. Seeing that Maggie wasn't ready to talk OA spoke up telling them what had went down inside the building. Jubal nudged Maggie's shoulder gently and spoke softly “Hey, you okay?”

He knew it was a stupid question, he didn’t even trust his own voice as he did speak. He had worked with Kristen a very long time, he cared about her, he cared about all of his team. He heard a small whimper from Maggie and right now he knew that no one would think anything of it as he ran his hand along her back slowly to try and comfort her. Maggie found herself leaning in to Jubal’s touch, she didn’t feel like she deserved his comfort but his touch, his presence in general was calming her. 

Isobel had told them she was going to find out what was happening, she was the one who would be informed until Kristen’s family arrived. OA had told them he was going to go and get them all coffee. Jubal was still sitting beside Maggie but none of them were talking, them just being together was enough. Jubal had a black band on his hand that he was constantly snapping and the sound of it started to irritate Stuart who snapped his head up to look at Jubal 

“Sorry it’s a coping mechanism” 

Hearing Jubal Maggie lifted her head to look at the band, she had wondered where it had come from and why he was wearing it and snapping it. Hearing him say about it being a coping mechanism made her realise that he wanted to drink. She was just about to speak to Jubal when Isobel came out at the same time that OA arrived back with the coffees, the others stood when they seen Isobel 

“Kristen is currently in surgery, the main issue is her carotid artery was damaged. They are working right now to repair it” OA, Stuart and Jubal all have tears in their eyes as they listen to Isobel, fresh tears are running down Maggie's cheek as they listen to the news about their friend and collague. “Guys you have all been here for a really long time, go home, get some sleep, I will let you know as soon as I get any information” 

The agents all reluctantly agree with Isobel, the case had been tough, they were all already exhausted and now they were all fearful for the life of their friend. OA tells Stuart that he will drop him off on the way home, he then looks at Maggie 

“You want us to drop you off on the way Maggie?”

Maggie had wiped the tears from her cheek and shook her head softly “Thanks OA but I'm going to go with Jubal. You two go and get rest, if either of you need anything just call” Maggie went over and hugged OA and Stuart before they left, Stuart was a little surprised by the hug but was thankful for it. 

Jubal was surprised when he heard Maggie telling OA and Stuart that she would get home with him, he was glad that she was coming home with him, right now he did not want to be alone nor was it a good idea for him to be alone. He had started snapping the band on his hand again just as Maggie turned to face him. She came over to Jubal and she lay her hand on his to stop him being able to pull at the band as she looked at Jubal with concern

“I'm guessing you drove here?” Without waiting for an answer Maggie slid her hand inside Jubal’s jacket and took out his keys for the suv and she slid her hand in to his entangling their fingers 

Jubal wasn’t sure how Maggie felt about him snapping the band on his arm, was the fact that he wanted to drink going to make her run away from him. He wouldn't blame her if it did, she shouldn't have to put up with his baggage when she was going through pain herself. He squeezed her hand gently as they walked towards the hospital exit 

“I can drive Mags your arm still needs to rest” 

“It's okay, I'll take pain meds when I get home if needed. I want to stop somewhere before going home so it’s easier if I drive” 

Jubal tried not to focus on the feeling that he got when Maggie said about them going home, it sounded like she meant ‘their home’ he knew they had only started dating but honestly he could imagine himself coming home with her and to her everyday. He ran his thumb over Maggie’s hand gently, her hand in his was making it a little easier for Jubal to fight the urge to drink. Maggie got in to the drivers seat and when Jubal got in she pulled out heading towards their first stop. 

Maggie could see that Jubal wanted to pull the band, she could see his fingers running along the band, she reached her hand over taking his hand in her’s 

“I know you might not feel ready but I'm here if you need to talk. I want to help you Jubal, I know the band is because you feel the urge to drink” 

Jubal sighed as he lifted Maggie's hand kissing the back of her hand he leaned his head back against the seat looking at her

“It's something that I found helps when in stressful situations. Snapping on it helps me fight against the urge to drink, I just don’t want any of this to be too much for you Mags”

Maggie could hear the struggle and emotion in Jubal’s voice as he spoke, it broke her heart to hear him. She also feared what would happen if he were to go home to an empty house tonight, thankfully he seemed okay with her staying with him. Well she was hoping that he didn’t mind they hadn't really talked about it. Maggie hadn't been driving for that long when they pulled back in to the FBI parking garage, Jubal was confused as he looked at Maggie 

“You took us back to work?”

Maggie shook her head and when she parked the car she turned to face Jubal more

“I know there is an AA meeting about to start, I think it would do you good to go”

They had all been told about the services available to them at work and Maggie knew that there was an AA meeting for agents so that they felt safe when talking. Jubal was really touched that Maggie was thinking so much about him, but he was fearful that she was dropping him off and then wouldn't be seeing him until tomorrow, maybe this had been too much for her. 

Maggie could see the worry and fear in Jubal’s eyes, she lifted her hand caressing his cheek gently

“I'm not going anywhere Jubal, I'm gonna wait right here for you. Take all the time you need okay? l’ll be right here the whole time” she leaned in closing the distance between them as she kissed him softly. 

Jubal wasn’t sure he could speak he was too emotional, for Maggie to think of him like this, to put this before her own pain and for her to drive him to a meeting and tell him that she would wait for him. He had never had someone care about him like this before, it was overwhelming. He lifted his hand to her cheek as he deepened the kiss a little and lay his forehead against hers gently when they had to break the kiss 

“Thank you Mags”

Maggie couldn't help the smile as she heard his whispered thanks against her lips, from the minute she seen him snap the band in the hospital and heard him tell Stuart this was a coping mechanism she knew that this was going to be her plan. 

“No thanks is needed… Now go before you are late” 

Jubal stole one more quick kiss before he got out of the suv and headed inside heading to his meeting. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven’t posted in a few days so decided to do a couple of chapters today 
> 
> Thank you to those that have supported this series in anyway

Maggie kept her eyes on Jubal until she couldn't see him anymore, she wasn't sure how Jubal would react to her taking him to a meeting but she was glad that he seemed touched by her concern. His addiction wasn’t something they talked about but it wasn't something that was ever going to make her run away from him. Maggie checked her watch and knew that the AA meeting would take at least an hour, she knew that she had told him she would wait there but she would be back in time. 

Maggie pulled out of the parking garage and she headed to her own apartment, she went inside and packed herself a quick bag with some things that she would need including a change of outfit for work tomorrow. She was hoping that Jubal would be okay with her staying, she didn’t want to leave him alone tonight and to be honest she needed him more than she wanted to admit right now. She checked that she had everything before getting back in to the suv and headed back to the FBI parking garage. 

Maggie was glad that the parking spot she had been in was still free when she got back as it meant that Jubal would have no trouble finding her. She tried to get comfortable in the seat as she lay her head back, any time she closed her eyes all she could picture was Kristen laying on the floor with Maggie's hand on her neck covered in blood. A large part of her felt that it was her fault that Kirsten was laying in hospital, if she hadn't suggested that Kristen partner her then maybe this would never have happened. 

Maggie was soon drawn from her thoughts as she heard the passengers door open, she gave a genuine smile when she seen Jubal climbing back in to the car as he seemed more relaxed than he had before the meeting

“Hey, you good to go home?”

Jubal smiled honestly at Maggie, his mind wasn’t completely eased and it wouldn't be until Kristen was okay but he did feel better after the meeting. The meeting had reminded him that he had to be honest with himself and those closest to him it was the only chance he had of staying sober

“I'm ready, but I have a favour to ask and you can totally say no, I don't want you to feel pressured” 

Maggie wasn’t sure what the favour was going to be but she could tell it was a big thing for Jubal to ask so she was going to try her best and do whatever he asked

“Well why don't you tell me what the favour is first and we will take it from there” 

Jubal was a little nervous because he had never been good at asking for things and he really didn’t want to scare Maggie off this early in their relationship, it was suppose to be the fun ‘honeymoon’ period, not her having to deal with his demons

“I was wondering if eh.. would you mind staying tonight or me staying at yours? I just really don't want to be alone, it will make fighting the cravings easier” 

“I'm already a step ahead of you there Jubal” 

Maggie could see the confusion on his face and she nodded her head in to the back seat where her bag was sitting and Jubal looked at Maggie 

“Where did that come from?”

“I knew your meeting was going to be at least an hour so I knew that I would be back in plenty of time, so I went home and packed a bag. I don't want to be alone tonight either Jubal so trust me I'm more than happy to stay and keep you company” 

Jubal didn’t have the words to thank Maggie right now, they all just seemed too small in comparison to what she had done and was doing for him. He had no idea how the hell he had got so lucky to have her care so much about him but he was determined not to screw it up. When words failed him he decided to try and show her with his actions so he leaned in and kissed her passionately with so much raw emotion as his hand cupped her cheek. Maggie couldn't help the moan that escaped when she felt Jubal nip lightly at her bottom lip, she broke the kiss when she had to for air but she kept her hand at the back of his head running her fingers through his hair 

“If that’s how I'm going to get kissed when I agree to keep you company I might just have to start doing it more often” Maggie smiled against his lips as she kissed him once more before pulling back as they were still parked at work they had to be careful. 

“Do you want me to drive us back to mine? We can stop and pick up some food” 

Maggie's left arm was still a little sore so she thought Jubal driving was the better idea, she got out and swapped places with him and when they both got settled he pulled out of the parking garage heading towards his apartment as the takeout was on the way. As he was driving home Maggie lay her hand on his thigh just above his knee, it was a simple touch but one that was keeping him completely grounded. Neither of them felt up to cooking and they had a proper lunch so they decided on pizza for tonight. They had rang on the way so Jubal only had to jump out quickly to collect them. They were back in Jubal’s apartment in a few minutes, he set the pizza boxes down on his kitchen counter and he faced Maggie holding out his hand. Maggie took her gun out of the holster handing it to him to put in the safe, she still had her bag in her hand 

“I'm going to go change really quickly and then ill join you for pizza”

Maggie went to Jubal’s room setting her bag down, she had brought her own comfortable clothes but she spotted his hoodie and she couldn't resist putting it on. She put on her own sweat pants and when she slid his hoodie on she closed her eyes taking a deep breath as it smelt like him and it just relaxed her so much. She decided to stay in her bare feet as she made her way back out to Jubal who was sitting on his couch, he had unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt and pulled it out of his jeans to hang loose, he was on his phone as Maggie made her way towards him. She stepped over his legs gently so that she could sit down beside him on the couch. 

The minute that she down beside him Jubal’s arm automatically wrapped around Maggie as he kissed her head, he still had his phone in his other hand and he turned it to show Maggie the screen, it had a picture of his kids on it 

“I got this when at the hospital, they wanted to send a picture to say good night” 

Maggie leaned further in to Jubal when his arm came around her, she leaned up kissing his neck when she heard the emotion thick in his throat talking about the kids 

“As soon as things calm down you should go have the day with them, I know how much you miss them” Maggie tapped his screen lightly to stop the screen from going dark “I never realised how much Tyler looks like you”

“You think he looks like me?” Jubal couldn't hide the joy in his voice, his kids really were his world and he wanted to open up more about them with Maggie if their relationship was going to work 

“He really does. Which means that you and Sam are going to have your hands full with all the hearts he’s going to break” she smirked playfully resting her hand on Jubal’s stomach 

“Hey! His father did not go around breaking hearts” he chuckled softly as his hand ran along Maggie's back slowly and that was when he realised the hoodie she was wearing “You're in my hoodie?” 

Maggie took her eyes off the picture to look at Jubal who was now looking down at her setting his phone to the side “I am.. It just looked so comfortable and I couldn't resist, I hope you don't mind”

“You can wear anything that you want of mine, I'm just happy you want to actually wear it” he leaned down kissing her softly, the backs of his fingers brushing across her cheek gently, she let out a soft sigh at the gentle touch. 

“I brought my own but this feels much more comfortable” she was resting her chin lightly on his shoulder and chest as her fingers scratched gently at his goatee “you want me to move so you can get a slice of pizza”

He shook his head gently running his fingers through her hair “Not really. I kinda like where you are” Jubal pressed his lips to Maggie's forehead letting them rest there for a minute. 

She closed her eyes at the feel of his lips on her forehead, she could happily just stay right there and fall asleep in his arms but she knew they would both regret it if they didn’t eat. Reluctantly she leaned forward and grabbed them both a slice of pizza. Jubal was delighted when he felt Maggie tuck herself back in to his side when she had given him his slice of pizza, they ate in silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable or awkward. In fact it was the opposite, they both just felt so comfortable around each other that the time didn’t always have to be filled with words. Maggie had leaned forward to grab them slices of pizza when they needed and would always tuck herself back in to Jubal’s side. 

When they had finished eating she stood up and took the pizza boxes to the kitchen knowing they could throw them out in the morning, she grabbed two bottles of water and came back over to Jubal, but instead of sitting down she held her hand out to him 

“Come on, it’s been a long day, we should go to bed” 

Jubal didn’t have to be asked twice, he stood up taking Maggie's hand and he followed her to his bedroom. When they got in to the bedroom Maggie let go of his hand to take off her hoodie, well his hoodie, she lay it on the chair close to the bed revealing the thin strapped vest tap that she was wearing, she took off her sweat pants and climbed in to the bed in just her vest top and panties. Jubal had started to undress when they got in to the room, he threw his trousers in his wash basket and his shirt lay on the chair. He climbed in to his bed and he couldn't resist the sigh that escaped as he let his body sink in to the bed. 

“It has been a really long and emotional day” 

While Jubal was speaking Maggie rolled on to her side and had snuggled in to his side, her head on his chest, her fingertips running along the skin on his chest and stomach, she loved that he felt comfortable enough to sleep in his boxers beside her. 

“It really has, but we made it through it, together. And Kristen is a fighter” 

Maggie kissed Jubals neck as she felt his body tense a little at the mention of Kristen, she knew that he and Kristen had worked together for a really long time so she knew he was taking this hard. Neither of them were currently aware of how guilty each of them felt about what had happened or their feelings about what happened. Maggie pulled the covers up around them and lay her hand on Jubal's chest over his heart 

“Let’s try and get some sleep” 

Both of them were exhausted after tough back to back cases, Maggie getting injured and now Kristen in hospital, but the heat from each other's body and relaxing so much in each other’s embrace, both of them were asleep within minutes. 


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie and Jubal get to have time together before heading in to work to face what is waiting for them

Maggie was the first to waken the next morning, she smiled seeing Jubal still asleep as she knew he really needed it, she carefully slid out of the bed thankful when he didn’t waken. He moved when she left the bed but it was to wrap his arms around her pillow, she couldn't help the large smile on her face as she lifted the shirt that he had on him yesterday and she put it on as she left going in to the kitchen. Maggie decided to make some fresh coffee and to make them a simple breakfast. 

Jubal woke not too long after Maggie but when he seen that she wasn’t in bed he thought that maybe last night dealing with him had been too much and that she had left but then he heard noises coming from his kitchen. He got out of the bed and made his way towards the kitchen, when he reached the kitchen he stopped as he enjoyed the view before him, it wasn’t often that he got to watch Maggie with her unaware that he was watching her. She was wearing only his shirt as she made her way around his kitchen, he was certain in that moment that this was something he wanted and needed to see more often. Maggie hadn't noticed him yet which meant that Jubal was able to sneak up behind her and wrap his arms around her waist from behind as he kissed her neck 

“Good morning”

Maggie smiled when she felt his arms snake around her waist, she ran her free hand to the back of his head and titled her head back as she leaned up and kissed him softly 

“Hmm good morning to you too” she smiled whispering against his lips 

“You know I could really get used to waking up to you being here every morning” Jubal didn’t mean to be so honest and was afraid it was too much too soon for Maggie, he was about to retract when Maggie leaned up stealing another kiss from him 

“You just like that I've got you proper coffee again” she teased playfully as she handed him his cup of coffee 

“Thank you for the coffee, and next time I wear this” he gently tugged on his shirt that she was wearing “this moment is all that is going to be on my mind” 

Maggie turned around in Jubal’s arms wrapping her arms around his neck as she leaned up kissing him slowly, they hadn't been called in for a case yet this morning which meant that they were able to take their time and enjoy their time together 

“So you like me wearing your shirt then?” She whispered against his lips smirking playfully 

Jubal sat his coffee mug down and he lifted Maggie up on to the counter and stood in between her legs running his hands along her sides 

“I like you in anything that you wear, but yes…. there is something extra special about you looking so dam good in my clothes” 

Maggie was running her fingers through Jubal’s hair as he spoke to her, she moved to the edge of the counter so that she could be as close to him as possible. Her hand ran from the back of his head and along his shoulder blades enjoying the shiver from his body at the feel of her fingers on his skin.

“Well I happen to like this almost naked look you have going on” 

Jubal ran his hands along Maggie’s thighs, his fingertips along her skin, he was enjoying the way she closed her eyes and took an uneven breath due to his touch. He ran his hands under the shirt she was wearing, along her sides, he leaned in kissing her slowly, running his tongue along her lower lip enjoying the taste of her mixed with coffee as his tongue brushed against her’s. Jubal’s thumbs brushed along the sides of Maggie's breasts which drew a moan from her. 

Jubal was about to get completely lost in the kiss when his phone rang causing a very deep chested groan from him causing him to break the kiss, making Maggie chuckle a little. She reached over handing him his phone as he was still standing between her legs. 

“It's Isobel, I need to answer” 

Maggie nodded to tell him to answer, it was work and it may be an update about Kristen so she totally understood that he wanted and needed to answer. When he didn't step away Maggie knew that it wasn’t an update about Kristen, he had stayed right where he was which was tight between her legs, he was leaning against the counter as Maggie was right at the edge of it. She ran her hand along Jubal’s chest and took delight when she got another shiver from him, his eyes were on her as he spoke to Isobel.

Maggie wasn’t sure what had come over her but she was really enjoying just getting this time with Jubal and she enjoyed getting to make him react like this. She leaned in pressing kisses to his neck, lightly nipping at the skin before letting her tongue brush over where she had been nipping. 

Jubal was finding it extremely hard to not only concentrate on his conversation with Isobel but to also stop a moan escaping as he felt Maggie's tongue against his neck. He was certainly not expecting this from Maggie while he was on the phone but every single part of him was enjoying it, enjoying her affection and enjoying getting to see this side of her. He finally hung up the phone from Isobel and he threw his phone over on to the couch as he lifted Maggie's head and he leaned down kissing her with so much desire, pulling at her bottom lip between his teeth. 

The desire and passion in the kiss along with him pulling on her lip caused a moan to escape from Maggie and she had to break the kiss for some air. She was breathing much heavier as she leaned her forehead against Jubal's

“So what did Isobel want”

Maggie wasn’t the only one that was breathing heavier now, Jubal was slowly getting his breathing back to normal as he was placing small kisses to her lips “I've to go in as soon as I can to go through the last case and for a meeting about what happened, its protocol”

Maggie had moved one of her hands to Jubals hair, running her fingers through his hair slowly and down to his neck “You should really eat breakfast before you go” they hadn't broke the distance, they were still leaning forehead to forehead and Maggie's legs were still wrapped around Jubal’s waist 

“I'm not ready to leave you yet” Jubal brushed Maggie's lips with his, in a slow almost lazy kiss just enjoying getting the chance to be the one kissing her like this 

“I’ll come in with you” Maggie managed to whisper out her words between kisses, she could feel Jubal tense a little when Isobel mentioned him going in, she knew he was still struggling, the black band was on his wrist still. 

When he heard Maggie’s words he pulled his head back a little so that he could look in to her brown eyes and he moved one of his hands to her cheek “You would really come in with me even though you have no reason to?”

“I can say I'm in to get caught up on paperwork before we our handed our next case. That way you know I'm only a few feet away if you need” Maggie wasn’t sure how Jubal would react to her offer but seeing his hazel eyes glaze over with almost tears she knew she had made the right decision 

“You know that you could easily just stay here and enjoy getting some more time off while we don't have a case” Every single part of Jubal wanted Maggie to come in to the office with him but he didn’t want to take away her chance at having extra time off work 

“I could…but that’s not what I want to do. I want to go in with you, you aren't taking away time from me Jubal, I am the one deciding to come in with you” Maggie smiled softly as she lay her hand on his neck caressing his jaw line with her thumb “Come on let’s eat” 

Jubal reluctantly stepped back from Maggie as he helped her down from the counter, they sat at the table and ate their breakfast and drank coffee. Jubal then let Maggie have the bathroom first while he sorted out some things in the apartment. Maggie shouted out to him when she was finished with the bathroom, she stepped in to his bedroom and got dressed for the day in her jeans, blouse and leather jacket. Since they hadn't been called in for a case Maggie decided to leave her hair down, she could tie it up if they got a case. She was just sliding on her boots when Jubal stepped in to the room and got dressed in his trousers and dark purple shirt. 

This was such a simple task but it felt so natural getting dressed with Jubal to head in to work, it wasn’t something that you just done with anyone and especially this early in a relationship but with Jubal it all felt natural. He was fixing his shirt when Maggie came over and she took his sleeves buttoning each sleeve for him. When she got to the right arm she ran her thumb over the black band gently before she looked up in to the hazel eyes that were watching her 

“The band is staying on?” She asked softly with no judgement 

Jubal remembered last night at the meeting, he had spoke and they had told him that if had someone close to him he had to be honest because it was the only way he would make it through this situation sober and with them still by his side. He watched Maggie button his sleeve buttons for him and her hand trace the band, he really appreciated that she hadn’t asked how the meeting went or questioned the band last night, he was also in awe of how gentle her touch was with him. 

“It is….. I promise that’s not a bad thing, it’s a coping mechanism and one that we are allowed to have. When I feel the urge to want to just run and drink snapping the band hard on my hand actually helps me forget about those urges. I don't want to lie to you and I don't want to hide from you. I will try my best to talk to you but I promise this is a healthy mechanism that is recommended for us to use” 

“Jubal, I believe you..I want you to do whatever you need to do to get through this without losing your sobriety, if there's anything I can do to help you just let me know. All I ask is that you don't push me away, I will take anything you throw at me I just couldn't handle you pushing me out on this” 

“Knowing you are there to help Mags means a lot, I know with you there is never any judgement. You haven't pushed since the meeting last night, others would have asked so many questions and even demanded I take the band off but you haven’t you've been patient and listened to me” 

Maggie ran her hands along Jubal’s arms, over his shoulders before cupping his face with her hands as she leaned up kissing him softly “I mean it, whatever you need I'm here” she whispered against his lips and smiled when she felt his grip around her waist tighten as she pulled her closer to him 

“You are amazing you know that right?” Jubal was speaking softly as he held Maggie close to him his hand running along her back slowly 

“I'm just doing what I can because I care about you Jubal” Maggie smiled as she placed another small kiss to Jubal’s lips, she honestly couldn't imagine ever getting tired of kissing him 

“You are too good to me, and you look really beautiful by the way” he whispered against her lips enjoying their final private moments before they had to leave to head in to work. 

Maggie ran her hand back down Jubal’s arm and took his hand in hers entangling their fingers “Come on, let’s head in. The longer we take the greater the chance that Isobel rings you again” 

Maggie lifted her phone when they got in to the kitchen and she let go of Jubal’s hand so that he could go to the safe and take out their guns, Maggie thanked him as she put hers safely back in to its holster and she handed Jubal his phone that she had picked up off the couch. Checking they had everything they finally left Jubal’s apartment heading into work 


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team meet a temporary new addition and Maggie has to take Jubal aside at work

When they had arrived to work Jubal had gone down one corridor to head in to the JOC to Isobel’s office and Maggie had gone down a different corridor that would take her to her desk. She reminded Jubal that she would be at her desk if he needed her he just had to come get her or text her and she would come to him. She could tell that he was a little hesitant about separating but she discretely squeezed his hand before they parted ways. 

Maggie was surprised to see that OA and Stuart were also at their desks when she walked in, it seemed that none of them wanted to be just sitting at home waiting on news on Kristen. All three agents were working quietly on their computers filling in their reports on their latest case when the quietness was disturbed by the sound of something being dropped on Kristen’s desk. All three agents turned to face the woman that was standing at Kristen's desk and who had dropped a box on to the desk. OA was the first to speak 

“Hey that’s Kristen Chazal’s desk”

“Well I guess I'm the new Kristen” 

Maggie was not impressed with what the woman had said “You do know that she’s in the hospital”

Scola jumped in before Maggie could finish “Fighting for her life”

“What no… They just”

Now the new woman was interrupted by Jubal who came walking over to their desks “Oh great you guys have met Emily Ryder. She’s here from the drug branch subbing for Kristen” 

“So we gather..” it was clear from Scola’s tone that he was not impressed as he looked at Jubal “Any word on Kristen” 

“She’s still unconscious.....but NYPD has send up a flare so you guys…thanks” Jubal pointed towards the JOC letting them know he wanted to talk to them all in there. Scola stood up to introduce himself to Emily but Maggie was out of her seat and after Jubal, she caught his elbow to turn him to face her 

“Why didn't you tell me that they were sending us a sub for Kristen?” The whole thing had upset the team and Maggie was angry that Jubal had hid this from her 

“I literally found out before I came over to you guys, apparently that’s what Isobel wanted to talk to me about and she apparently mentioned something on the phone about it, but erm.. I was a little distracted” Jubal couldn’t help the smirk that appeared at his last few words 

Maggie looked in to Jubal’s eyes and she could see that he was really struggling with the fact that they had sent in someone to sub for Kristen so quickly and that he really didn’t have any warning. Well he may have been given a small warning but she was too busy distracting him for him to have heard properly. 

“I'm sorry Jubal. I thought you would have been told sooner...and hey you were not complaining about me distracting you this morning” Now Maggie was the one with a small smirk on her face 

He shook his head softly, he understood Maggie’s anger he was angry himself “I had no idea until I was in Isobel’s office, I forgot that it was protocol and especially when we get a flare up from NYPD. I'm not happy about it either Mags and I’m never going to complain about you distracting me that way”

“I didn’t mean to sound like I was accusing you, it was just a shock, and you and I are struggling but.... Stuart is struggling even more” 

“I wanted to give you guys a heads up about Emily but she was here before me. I’ll try to get a minute with Stuart and talk to him, see how he’s doing” 

Jubal seen OA, Stuart and Emily coming walking towards them to head to the JOC and he stood up straighter seeing them and his change in posture let Maggie know that their team was coming walking towards them. They headed in to the JOC where Isobel told them that their new case was a gunshot victim who was shot twice while sitting in his convertible. Maggie and OA left heading to the crime scene. When they were alone in the car OA looked at Maggie 

“Did you know they were sending someone to replace Kristen?”

“It's not to replace her it’s just to sub until Kristen is out of the hospital and back in the field.. and no I had no idea”

“Why did Jubal not give us a heads up?”

“That's what I was asking him, seems it was a surprise to him too. Things just moved quickly because of this new case”

OA could tell from Maggie's tone that she didn’t want to talk about Emily and she didn’t want to talk about Kristen either. Anytime that OA mentioned her name it brought tears to Maggie’s eyes, she really did feel guilty that Kristen was laying in hospital because of her. The detective who had been given the case was waiting for Maggie and OA at the scene, Maggie spoke to him as they got close 

“Agent Bell, this is agent Zidan, so what have we got?”

“The victim was shot twice while sitting in the car on the phone to his lawyer”

“Why is the case being handed to us?” Maggie was standing closer to the detective while OA checked out the car and the victim and the detective spoke loud enough for them both to hear 

“It’s your case because it’s a high profile victim. SVU blew a rape case against this guy and the brass think that the NYPD will screw this up too”

“Who's the victim?” Maggie had just asked as the body was moved from leaning against the steering wheel to lean back in the seat, both Maggie and OA recognised the victim straight away with OA speaking first 

“It's Keith Gilroy”

Maggie and OA find out what they can from the crime scene and they send the details to Jubal as they head back to the JOC to start to dig in to Gilroy’s past but they know that the list of suspects is going to be long as he was hated by a lot of people. Maggie and OA arrive back at the JOC just as Jubal is addressing everyone so they stop at the back of the room to listen to Jubal

“This is Keith Gilroy” he points to a picture on the large screen at the front “for those of you who have been living under a rock Gilroy was the CEO of Telsara, the hundred billion dollar software company here in the city. Last year several female employees alleged that he pressured them into unwanted sexual relationships. He was run out on a rail shortly thereafter but criminal charges were never filed. He silenced the women with cash and high price lawyers. So let’s do a deep dive in to this guys world. But what we do know is several victims and their families hated this guy, so let’s start there” 

As soon as Jubal finished talking he started snapping on the black band that had moved from his wrist to his hand, he was asking one of the analysts about something, Maggie couldn’t hear what he had asked the analyst, or what the analyst said back to him but Jubal was not happy and she could hear him almost bite the analysts head off. She can see Jubal was really struggling. OA was with Stuart and Emily going through some of the sexual assault victims cases so Maggie took the chance to go up to the front of the JOC and she took Jubal by the elbow and into the room they had been in after his visit from Harry Bloom. When they stepped in to the room Jubal was snapping harder on the band and without warning Maggie slid her hand in between the band and Jubal’s hand so that the band snapped against her hand and that brought Jubal out of his own head 

“Mags…I just hurt you” he had heard the snap but hadn't felt it hit his hand and he found out why when he looked down and seen the band against Maggie’s hand. She took the band from her hand and slid it back down on to Jubal’s wrist as she shook her head

“You didn't hurt me, and I stuck my hand there not you.. But what's going on with you?”

“What do you mean I'm fine?” Jubal knew he wasn’t fine and Maggie knew she was going to have to push him a little here 

“Jubal you are not fine, you just bit the head off Lee and from what I could hear he hadn’t done anything wrong” 

Jubal was quiet as he leaned against the table behind him and he looked at the band on his hand before at Maggie “I snapped at him because he isn’t Kirsten” 

“You know that’s not his fault, he’s doing the best he can and from what I've seen he's a good analyst”

“He is.. He’s one of the best.. it’s just…”

Maggie moved forward to stand in front of Jubal, she seen his thumb run over the band on his wrist, she took his hand gently in hers and intertwined their fingers 

“It's just what?” Maggie was speaking softly, as much as she knew she needed to push Jubal to talk she didn't want to push too far 

“It's all too much Mags… You getting injured, Kirsten being in the hospital, them sending a replacement for her, I haven't seen the kids in almost two weeks because of how crazy things have been at work, I really miss them and…”

Maggie's heart was breaking watching and listening to Jubal she had never seen him look or sound so vulnerable and exposed she knew she had to be careful with how she handled this. 

“And what honey?” The pet name ‘honey’ had just slipped out but she actually liked the way that it sounded and it caught Jubal’s attention as he lifted his head to look at her, she seen the unshed tears in his eyes 

“And the guilt…. the guilt because when I found out it was Kristen and not you I was relieved. What kind of man does that make me” 

Maggie dropped Jubal’s hands and he thought that his confession had disgusted her and that was her pulling away so he dropped his head unable to watch her walk away but he was surprised when he felt two arms wrap tightly around him, he let his forehead rest against Maggie's shoulder as she ran her hand along his back kissing his head 

“Oh Jubal…” she whispered kissing his head again “it makes you human… it doesn't make you any less of a man or an agent that you had that thought. But I'm right here, I'm not going anywhere, Kristen is a fighter and as soon as we get this case closed and know that Kristen is okay you go and see the kids and you take as much time with them as you need” 

Jubal wrapped his arms around Maggie’s waist, he had never been this vulnerable or exposed to anyone outside of AA but he was trusting Maggie here and he knew that it might be too much he was just hoping it wasn’t because he couldn't face losing her. He finally pulled his head back to look up at the brown eyes staring down at him, staring in to his soul is what it felt like for him 

“You’re not digusted or disappointed in me for thinking that way or for the mess that I am right now?”

Maggie moved her hands to Jubal’s neck both thumbs caressing his jawline “I'm neither of those things, if I was I wouldn't be standing here right now. I know you are hurting right now but you can’t take it out on the analysts, Kristen means so much to them, it’s where she started, they are all afraid, so they are looking to you to be strong. And I know that you are strong…. and you aren't alone I'm right here” 

Jubal had no idea what he had done to deserve this woman being so gentle and understanding with him and caring about him so much, he was falling in love with Maggie more and more each day.. He had no idea if she was there yet but he was without doubt in love with her he had been for a while. 

“Can you say it again?”

He asked so quietly that Maggie just about heard him but she didn’t have to ask what he meant, she stepped closer and leaned her forehead against his as she moved her hands to his cheeks and whispered against his lips “honey….” before she closed the gap between their lips kissing him softly and she could feel him smile in the kiss and she could feel his body relax against the table, he wasn't holding his body tense anymore. 

“So I'm guessing you don't have an issue with me calling you honey then” Maggie whispered against his lips and she could feel him shaking his head 

“No issues what so ever.. pretty sure I'd be okay with you calling me whatever you wanted to” Jubal smiled softly as he took one of his arms from around Maggie’s waist to take the hand that the band had snapped on and he kissed the back of her hand “You sure I didn’t hurt you” 

“You didn’t hurt me I promise” Maggie leaned down kissing his head, she fixed his hair and shirt collar for him and stood back a little making sure that he looked okay “You feeling ready to go back out there and take on this case?”

Jubal took a deep breath steadying himself before looking back up at Maggie and he nodded his head smiling, he looked more relaxed and he did look ready to go back out to the JOC

“I'm ready… and once again I don’t have the words to thank you enough for everything you have done for me and are doing for me Mags” 

Maggie ran her hands along his biceps and squeezed them gently “And I'm always going to tell you that you never have to thank me, I am doing it because I care about you” she stood back a little and held her hands out to get Jubal to stand up straight and away from the table, he took her hands straight away standing up. When he stood up straight she fixed his shirt and made sure they both looked okay again 

“Remember that I am right here and I’ve got your back no matter what” 

Jubal had a genuine honest smile on his face and it caused maggie to smile in response to him, she squeezed his hand gently before she left heading in to the JOC to find OA, Jubal waited a couple of minutes before he left the room, he knew and admitted to himself in there in that moment that he was in love with Maggie Bell. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie and OA track down a suspect before going to visit Kristen

As soon as Jubal got back inside the JOC he made his way over to Lee apologising for the way that he spoke to him earlier. Maggie was standing close by with OA, Stuart and Emily and she could hear Jubal apologise, she was proud of him for doing that as she knew it wasn’t an easy thing to do. Stuart and Emily found the name of the woman who’s picture Gilroy was holding when he was shot so they head to her work to question her about her relationship with him. 

While they go to question her Maggie and OA went to speak to Gilroy’s lawyer who was on the phone to the victim when he was shot. He tells them that a lot of people hated his client but that Mr Gilroy was trying to make it right, he had found out he had stage 4 cancer and didn’t have long left to live. While talking to the lawyer Maggie and OA got an update about the motorbike that the shooter was on, they thank the lawyer for his time and head to talk to the kid who owned the motorbike that was used. 

The kid tells them that his motorbike was stolen and that he tracked it down with its GPS, he brings Maggie and OA to where he found the bike exactly. Maggie and OA search the scene and Maggie spots something 

“I’ve found a footprint, maybe Jubal and the others can track our killer down from this” 

Maggie takes a picture and sends it to Jubal and thankfully it doesn't take the analysts long to track it down “The print that Maggie found was made by that boot” Jubal points to a picture on the large screen while talking “a woman's size seven. So we are now looking for a female suspect. Let's see if we can figure out where she went after she dumped that bike” 

While OA and Maggie wait for word from Jubal about the shoe print they headed to talk to Keith Gilroy’s foundation. While speaking to the woman in charge she tells them that a woman had threatened Keith recently at a restaurant and had turned up at the foundation a few days ago, her name was Gayle Dixon. OA texts the name to Jubal asking for anything they can find on her. Ian gets to work on it and he finds that Gayle Dixon filed a sexual assault claim against Keith, he also believes he has found her location 

“Jubal, a cab driver just confirmed that he dropped Gayle Dixon off at The Hollywood Hotel a couple of hours ago” 

“Nice work Ian” Jubal phones Maggie straight away “Maggie, you and OA head to The Hollywood Hotel.. Gayle Dixon the woman who threatened Keith Gilroy was dropped off by a cab driver a couple of hours ago” 

“Okay thanks Jubal we will keep you posted” Maggie tells OA to turn the suv around and calls out the address of the hotel. When they arrive at the hotel they decided to talk to the doorman, show him a picture of Gayle Dixon to see if he has seen her

“She was left here a couple of hours ago but I haven't seen her since so I don't think she has left” 

While the doorman was talking to them something out the front of the hotel catches Maggie’s eye and she taps OA’s arm  “OA look at those boots” she points at the exact same boots that Jubal had sent them a picture of. The woman spots OA and Maggie and she draws a gun shooting up in to the air to get people to run so that she herself can run. Maggie and OA chase her when they round the corner the woman turns on them with the gun, OA moves standing in front of Maggie as he shoots the woman in the arm. 

They called for medics straight away as her arm is bad condition, OA took away her gun while Maggie called for Medics. While they waited Maggie tried to get her to talk but she wouldn’t say a word, so she took her thumb print and sent it to Jubal. Jubal replied instantly telling them that her name is Sarah Baines but that her address is an empty lot. Maggie got them to bring the suitcase that Sarah dropped when she ran from them, inside they found fake passports and they noticed something bulky on Sarah and when they checked they realise that she was wearing Kevlar. Maggie and OA step aside to call Jubal, they put him on speaker while Maggie speaks 

“Jubal, Sarah Baines has fake passports, she's wearing Kevlar and her address is fake, she's not another one of Gilroy’s victims she's a professional killer. We need to find out who hired her”

“We are going through Gayle Dixions movements and records now…hang on guys Kelly has something” 

Kelly one of the analyst comes over to Jubal and hands him a piece of paper and he reads it out to Maggie and OA “Okay guys, Gayle Dixion talked about hiring someone to kill Keith Gilroy, it was to her therapist and because it was a potential harm to someone else's life the therapist had to report it. Go and pick up Gayle Dixon and bring her in for questioning” 

When they picked up Gayle they were about to head back to the FBI building when Maggie had an idea and she looked at OA “Drop me off at the hospital I'm going to talk to Sarah Baines again see if I can get her to tell me anything” 

OA agreed with Maggie so he dropped her off at the hospital before he took Gayle back for questioning. During the interrogation Gayle told OA that Keith Gilroy had called her last week to apologise and that he was going to pay her for what he had done to her so she had no reason to want to kill him. When OA was finished with Gayle Dixion he heads to the hospital to pick up Maggie and it also gives them the chance to go and see Kristen. While making his way to find Maggie OA spots Stuart sitting in the hospital chapel and asks if him if he can join the other man so that they can both pray for Kristen. 

It didn’t take long for Maggie to question Sarah Baines as she told Maggie that even if she wanted to that she wouldn't be able to tell them who had hired her, she always makes sure to never know, makes her job easier. Maggie had made her way to the ward that Kristen was on but she couldn't go in to see her, she was drowning in her thoughts when OA appeared beside her 

“Hey how is Kristen?”

“I haven't seen her yet, I thought that you might want me to wait for you”

“Well I'm here now so let’s go” 

When OA moves to walk in to the ward Maggie doesn't move straight away but she eventually does and when they walk on to the ward Kristen spots them and something happens to cause her to crash, they rush passed Maggie and OA bringing Kristen back towards theatre. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie and OS update Jubal on Kristen and Maggie wants to take a risk to solve the case

Maggie and OA hardly spoke to each other as they made their way back to the office, neither really knew what to say. When they stepped off the elevator Jubal was waiting for them as he knew they had been to seen to Kristen, OA looked at Jubal as they walked towards the JOC 

“We went in to see her and she crashed, they were rushing her back in to surgery. We hung around to talk to her doctor, The surgical graft failed so they are trying to fix it”

“Trying?” That was all Jubal got out as he started snapping on his black band again, Maggie wanted to reach out and stop him but she knew that she couldn’t while OA was there, it would lead to too many questions. 

Seeing that Maggie wasn't going to speak OA decided to answer Jubal “They said that it’s a difficult procedure” 

Jubal stopped walking as they were just outside the JOC, he was still snapping on the band, it seeemed even harder now  “Alright. Well then let’s keep a good thought” and with that Jubal walked back in to the JOC with Maggie and OA on his heels. 

Jubal was catching Maggie and OA up on things, he told them that Gilroy had called four other victims and apologised for what he had done to them, that he seemed to be trying to make things right with them. Ian was working on his computer when he called out for Jubal 

“Hey Jubal, Sarah Baines just got a text”

Jubal stood up to get everyone’s attention “Yo Yo check it” 

“I can mirror the screen” Ian pulled it up on to the large screen on the front so that everyone could see the text message 

“Can you trace the text?” 

“I'm trying. The text was sent as data so I'm hitting a brick wall” 

Maggie and OA had joined Jubal up at the front and were reading the text ‘account#’ when something from her conversation with Sarah Baines popped in to her head “Sarah Baines said that she was using wired transfers so maybe the client is asking which account to send it to” 

Jubal took his eyes off the screen to look at Maggie “I can have white collar set up a dummy account that we can use” 

OA looked at Jubal and Maggie “If the text was untraceable I'm pretty sure the money trail would be too”

“You know what I have an idea” Maggie walked away from Jubal and OA and joined Ian, she took Sarah’s phone and replied to the client ‘problem- account compromised’ 

The client replied instantly ‘find a new one’

Jubal and OA were watching the exchange of texts on the large screen, Jubal turned to look at Maggie “White collar is getting aggressive on offshore banking” 

“Okay thats good, I can use that” Maggie replied to the client’s text 'offshore crackdown. Want in cash’

It took a minute for the client to reply this time ‘not the agreement and not acceptable’

OA kept his eyes on the screen as he spoke to Maggie “Yeah I didn’t think they were going to go for that” 

“It's not over yet” Maggie was determined and Jubal couldn’t help the small smile that appeared as he watched Maggie like this, he was watching her as she was biting her lip before looking back up at the screen as she had messaged the client again ‘I will find you’ 

“Nothing like some menacing subtext” Jubal spoke as he looked at OA and Maggie before back at the screen. They all stood staring at the screen waiting for the reply but the client was taking their time before a reply finally came through  ‘Will text with time and place’ 

“Nice work Maggie, we have a meeting. Now we need to send someone in” Jubal had turned his back to the screen to face Maggie and Ian while he was speaking and without any hesitation Maggie stared right at Jubal and OA as she answered

“I’ll go”

Jubal should have known that Maggie would have offered to go undercover for this, she had been determined from she picked up Sarah Baines phone and right now he couldn’t think of a good reason that it shouldn't be Maggie. The only reason he didn’t want her going was because he didn’t want her getting hurt or worse, but he couldn’t use that as a reason. What did surprise him was that OA looked as reluctant as he did. 

But before Jubal or OA can say or do anything Maggie is already in Isobel’s office and they both join so that they can find out what is going on and at least do what they can to make sure that Maggie is safe at all times. Maybe Isobel will surprise them and say no to Maggie, Jubal is drawn out of his thoughts when he heard Isobel 

“You want to go meet this person as the professional killer” 

“The client hasn’t met Sarah yet, so far I know her better than anyone. I really am the best person to take her place” 

“And then what?”

This time it was Jubal who spoke up “once the client hands Maggie the money that seals it. We arrest him or her” 

Maggie looked at Isobel who was quiet, but she wasn’t going to give up she really wanted this “Look its our best shot to figure out who had Keith Gilroy killed” 

Isobel was surprised to hear OA was being so quiet as she was usually one to speak up in support of his partner “Agent Zidan, you are being awfully quiet. What do you think?” 

OA looked straight at Isobel not glancing at either Maggie or Jubal “We don't know where this meet is going down, we can’t plan properly. We shouldn't be doing this on the fly, so I don't support it” 

Maggie was surprised to hear her partners words, they usually always had each other's back, she expected resistance from Jubal but not OA. She was distracted briefly from her anger when Sarah Baines phoned beeped with a message and Maggie spoke directly to Isobel 

“We just got a text, location is 108 Allen Street. 30 minutes” Maggie looks at Isobel waiting for her to make her decision and Isobel decides to focus on Maggie

“If this is our best shot then go”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie goes undercover as the hired killer

Jubal had tired to get a minute alone with Maggie before she had to leave with OA but it was impossible, they had been given such a short window for her to get to the location and for everyone to get set up in their places. Maggie had tried just as hard as Jubal to get a minute alone for them but things were moving so quickly and she was trying to deal with her and OA not really talking. They had decided that OA was going to drive the cab that Maggie was in that way he could keep eyes on her and report it back to everyone on coms. Maggie did manage to steal a quick glance at Jubal who thankfully was looking her way, that settled her a little as she left with OA. 

When they arrived at the location Maggie seen they had a few minutes and she didn’t want to be early for the meet 

“You know you should have backed me up Isobel”

“You're not even wearing a wire” OA looked in the mirror at Maggie as he spoke 

“Of course I'm not, what if they check?” 

“I still don't like how this feels” 

“What is going on with you OA, you don't back me up with Isobel and you stepped in front of me when you took that shot at Sarah Baines. I'm not a little girl I can handle myself” 

Before OA could reply Maggie had gotten out of the taxi and headed towards 108 Allen Street, he sighed watching her walk away, he hated leaving things like this when she was about to go undercover. What had happened Kristen had shook them all and he couldn’t help that he had become extra protective of Maggie, that knife to the neck was meant for her and he couldn’t imagine anything happening to her, she really had become family to him. OA was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard Jubal’s voice in his ear through the coms 

“OA what's happening?”

“Maggie is at the drop but nothing yet” 

“Okay all units sound off” the other three units including Stuart and Emily check in to confirm their locations. That's the third time already that Jubal has made them check in, Isobel noticed how nervous he seemed about all of this but she was putting it down to everyone still being on edge waiting on news about Kristen but it was making her keep a close eye on him. 

“Wait, Maggie is on the move” OA sits up straighter in the cab so that he can see better as Maggie starts to walk further away from OA and away from where the drop was suppose to take place 

“What do you mean she's on the move, where is she going?” Jubal is trying to hide the panic in his voice as he knows everyone can hear him right now 

“She’s headed south down Allen, she was suppose to stay at 108”

Isobel can hear the panic in OA’s voice and can see the panic on Jubal’s face as she speak’s to OA 

“Did you see anyone?”

“No one else was out there. I'm going to tail her” 

“All other units stand by” Jubal was now snapping much harder on the black band on his wrist, so hard that it had caught the attention of everyone in the JOC but he is oblivious to it. OA has gone too quiet for Jubal “OA”

“I lost visual contact” OA was out of the cab and running to where he had last seen Maggie as he walked down a small alleyway 

“Okay unit 2, Scola hold your position, Agent Ryder you break off and head towards Agent Zidan.. OA what’s going on?”

OA had gone down the alleyway that he had seen Maggie walk down “I can’t see Maggie.. She’s gone” the worry is clear in OA’s voice as he looks around trying to find any sign of where Maggie had gone 

Isobel looks at Jubal but he looks pale, she think’s he might even be sick with how pale he goes so Isobel steps in “What do you mean she's gone, gone where?”

“I don't know” 

The worry and panic in OA’s voice pulls Jubal back in to action, he leans his hands on the table as he tries to sound calm talking to OA, he knows how much OA cares about Maggie so he knows the agent is scared right now “OA how far ahead of you was Maggie”

“Ugh….maybe 75 meters” 

“Did you see any other vehicle’s?”

“No nothing” OA was frantically checking the alleyway but he couldn’t find any signs of which building Maggie may have gone in to “We need to search these buildings” 

“You and Agent Ryder can search when she gets there, she's on her way to you…. All other units sit tight…” Jubal closes his eyes as those words leave his mouth, he wants to tell all agents to go and search for Maggie but he knows that he can’t

“What?” OA snapped down the phone at Jubal “We need every agent down here now Jubal” 

Jubal wasn’t surprised with how angry OA sounded right now but he was trying to protect Maggie “OA if the meet is still happening that will blow Maggie’s cover. You and Agent Ryder go door to door quietly…. And OA… We will find her” Jubal said those last few words trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to convince OA, he's afraid to move his hands off the desk as he's not sure he has to strength to stand by himself. He feels useless once again just standing there, first Maggie getting clipped with the bullet in the arm, Kristen fighting for her life and now Maggie was missing. 

When Agent Ryder joined OA they started to search the buildings around them trying to be quiet as possible as they didn’t want to put Maggie at any risk. Maggie knows that at this stage Jubal and OA are probably close to having panic attacks but she had to go along with the client. The client had lead her at gunpoint into one of the buildings and had searched her for a wire, she was thankful in that moment that Isobel had backed her idea of no wire. It didn’t take Maggie long to realise she was dealing with an errand boy and not the client, his grammar was completely different from that used in the text messages. She had just told the errand boy that she knew he wasn’t the client when he got a text to his phone and he lifted his gun to shot Maggie but she was able to wrestle with him trying to get the gun off him. He lifted his gun and hit her over the head with it before escaping out of the building. 

Agent Ryder and OA find Maggie just as she is trying to get back to her feet, OA ran to her straight away 

“Maggie are you okay?”

Hearing OA speak has caught Jubal’s full attention, the problem is he can’t hear what Maggie says to OA

“It was just a middle man, he got spooked by a text message, he decked me with his gun and then took off” 

“Okay you need an ambulance” 

Isobel took the job of sending an ambulance to their location, Jubal was focused on listening to OA 

“OA what is going on?”

Maggie must have moved closer to OA because this time Jubal can hear Maggie himself 

“No what I need is to get that son of a bitch” Jubal could feel his body relaxing hearing Maggie’s voice

Agent Ryder looked at Maggie “I’ll spread the word, you got a description of the man?”

“Ugh 50’s, he's wearing a leather jacket, he's heavy set. He couldn’t have gotten far just get them to lockdown the perimeter”

“Maggie and I will clear inside just in case” OA took out Maggie’s gun handing it to her as they slowly make their way through the building. 

It didn’t take long for Maggie and OA to find him, but he refuses to come out and talk to them, he shoots at them but they are able to take cover behind objects in the building. Maggie and OA move closer to him but he continues to shoot so Maggie takes the shot hitting him. Maggie tried to get him to tell her who the client was but he died before he could say anything. She lifted his mobile phone and handed it to OA 

“We need to get in to this phone and see his last message, when he got that message he tired to shoot me”

OA and Maggie left the building with OA taking the phone to where Stuart was standing with the rest of the agents and told him to try and get into the phone while Maggie went to the ambulance as she needed stitches 


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Maggie gets a phone call from Jubal and they find out who errand boy is

Maggie had gotten her phone back from OA as she knew that Jubal was going to be ringing her and she smiled when she seen his name appear on her screen as she was sitting in the ambulance as they cleaned up her cut 

“You know I'm sure that OA and Stuart would have happily filled you in about what happened” she teased playfully, she knew there was no way Jubal was going to hear it from anyone but her and to be honest she really wanted to hear his voice 

“Yeah? You want me to disappoint them and tell them it isn't their voices that I want to hear” Jubal couldn’t help the large smile on his face as he listened to Maggie and it felt good to hear her voice 

“I'm not sure they could take that heartache right now” Maggie went quiet for a minute before speaking again “So how red is your wrist?” She didn’t have to see Jubal to know that he would have been snapping hard on the band on his wrist 

“If I told you that it wasn’t red at all would you believe me?” Jubal had gone in to the room that he had been in earlier with Maggie so that he could talk to her in private as he knew Isobel had been watching him really closely 

“Nope. Not even for a second.. I know you would have been snapping on that thing like crazy” 

“It's red. But Mags you should have heard the panic in OA’s voice when he couldn’t find you, and it was up to me to try and calm him, Isobel had tried but it was making OA more nervous. So I had to try and calm him down and still act normal even though every part of me wanted to tell every agent there to go looking for you.. What happened Mags?”

Maggie closed her eyes listening to Jubal, she knew that he would have been a wreck when OA lost visual on her and she knew OA would be bad as well with how protective he had been this whole case and when Jubal had told her Isobel tried to calm OA down she knew that meant at some point Jubal had gone quiet for too long 

“The guy text me told me he was watching me and to take the second stairwell to the left. If I tried to warn you or OA he would have seen. I had 20 agents backing me up, OA was out here and you were running things from there, I knew I was okay” 

Jubal couldn't help the smile when he heard about Maggie saying she knew she was safe when he was running command, he really had no idea how much she trusted him “You know we would never have stopped looking until we found you, I don't care what protocol was they would have searched for you non stop” 

Maggie thanked the paramedic for cleaning up her cut and putting stitches on the cut on the edge of her forehead, she stepped down from the ambulance “Hey Jubal hang on I think Scola and OA have something, I'm gonna put you on speaker” she didn’t want her conversation with Jubal to end like this but with the way OA and Scola were walking towards her she knew they had found something “Guy’s you have Jubal on speaker so what's going on?”

Scola was the one holding the mans phone so he was the one to speak “So we got into his phone and found something that you are going to want to see.. He took one picture, Jubal I’ll send it your way.. But here is the picture Maggie” Scola sent the picture to Jubal and then held the screen up to Maggie to show a picture of her that the guy had taken 

“I didn’t seen him take that” 

“He took the picture and texted it out, presumably to the client and this is the text that he got back”

Before Scola could show the text OA was reading it out loud “Get out of there she is FBI” 

“The client recognised my face, so whoever is behind this knows who I am” 

That thought wasn’t sitting well with Maggie, Jubal, OA or Stuart, they had all been through enough lately without anything else happening the team. Jubal could hear how quiet they all were and he knew he had to step up as his role of their ASAC 

“Okay guys make your way back to the JOC and hopefully by then we will have an ID on our dead guy” 

They all agreed with Jubal and Maggie ended the call even though neither her or Jubal were really happy with their call ending this way, but they were working a case and they had to remain professional. It didn’t take them long to make it back to the JOC and Jubal raised an eyebrow seeing the cut on Maggie’s head, and the bruise that was starting to form around that cut

“Well that is going to leave a mark for a while” his fingers were playing with a pencil as he so badly wanted to reach out and gently caress her cheek because the bruise and cut looked painful and he hated seeing her hurt but he knew that he had to keep his hands to himself 

Stuart appeared beside OA, Maggie and Jubal and he cleared his throat handing Maggie pain killers, a bottle of water, and he was holding ice he had gotten from medical “They are just ordinary pain killers so won’t affect your work, water to take them with and the medics said some ice might help with any swelling and bruising around the cut” he seemed a little shy saying it all infront of Jubal and OA “ugh Kristen would kill me if I didn’t try to look out for you until she’s back and I knew you and OA wouldn't have been able to stop to get anything”

Maggie was feeling a little emotional with how nice Stuart was being to her, she seen the pain on his face when he mentioned Kristen, she took the painkillers with a quick drink of water and then she stepped forward and hugged Stuart speaking that only he could hear “Thank you and Kristen will appreciate this, as do I” She stepped back smiling softly 

Jubal already had a lot of time for Stuart he really liked his work ethic and he liked him as a person they got on really well, worked well together but seeing him taking care of Maggie like that was just making that fondness grow even more. OA seen how emotional everyone was right now so he lay his hand on Stuart’s shoulder “Thanks for showing me up as a partner bro” he laughed softly 

Stuart relaxed and laughed shrugging his shoulders “You just need to up your skills there OA”

Jubal shook his head, he could see why they all worked so well as a team but speaking of team they had a case to work“Okay guys, our dead man is Ray Shoals” Jubal was speaking while stepping up to the large screens at the front so that everyone could hear him “He was an ex cop, got caught stealing drugs from a crime scene, I guess the NYPD frowns upon that these days. He then became a PI but ended up doing three years for extorsion” 

Maggie was leaning against the front desk with OA and Stuart either side of her with Emily the other side of Stuart 

“So then shoals is a go between” 

Jubal nodded “The fixer”

“He probably hooked up the client with Sarah Baines” 

“Question being who is the client. We thought Shoals phone might tell us that but it was a dead end”

“Well whoever it is they recognised me, so its got to be somebody that is connected to this case or some other case. Have you searched Sholas place yet?”

Maggie was expecting an immediate answer from Jubal but he was lost in this thoughts, whoever this client was knew Maggie and that might mean she was in danger right now and that was not sitting well with him. Emily was busy admiring the way that Jubal and Maggie were bouncing their thoughts off each other as was Stuart as he loved watching them like this so it was left to OA to speak to try and get Jubal’s attention 

“Jubal?” 

Jubal cleared his throat “Eh yeah, erm the search is in progress, but nothing yet” 

Maggie was wondering where Jubal’s mind had gone to that he had been too distracted to answer her, she was just glad he hadn't reached for the band on his wrist as OA spoke 

“What about Sarah Baines”

“We still have no idea who she really is, her phone was no help” Jubal was now standing with his hands on his hips 

“What about her passports?” OA had stood up while speaking to Jubal 

Jubal checked in with Kelly, the analyst who had been following that lead and she shook her head at Jubal “Yeah no luck with that either. My guess is she has been doing this work for a long time at a high level but we still can't really tie her to Gilroy’s hit or any other hit for that matter. She’s like a ghost”

Ian came walking up to the front where they were all standing “ERT found a listening device and a GPS tracking device in Gilroy’s car” 

OA looked at Maggie this time when speaking “It had to be Sarah Baines so that she knew where he was” 

“If she was listening in, then maybe she heard other stuff too. Let's try talking to her again” 

Maggie and OA headed to the hospital to talk with Sarah Baines, Maggie told OA to wait outside that any chance she had of Sarah talking it would be just the two of them. Sarah tells Maggie that she wasn't the one that planted those devices in Gilroy’s car but that she will give her a description of the man who did if Maggie gets her less jail time. Maggie agrees to ask for less jail time, when Sarah gives the description Maggie shows her a picture of Shoals and she confirms that he was the one that planted the devices. 


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They finally track down their killer and get news on Kristen

Maggie and OA got the address for a building where Shoals was renting an office space, while searching his office they found Ava Mercer’s number on a piece of paper, she was the girl from the pictures that Gilroy was clutching in his hand when he died. Maggie and OA headed straight back to the JOC, they walk in as Jubal is about to address the room. Maggie sees him leaning against one of the desks as he snaps on the band again, she is sure that the band is leaving marks. Jubal sees Maggie and he takes a calming breath letting go of the band as he speaks to the JOC

“There is still no news on Kristen which I'm choosing to take as good news and you should too………..So let's dig in to Ava Mercer, what is her connection to Shoals, is it innocent, is she the client, did she have Shoals bug Gilroy’s car and arrange this murder. We need answers let’s go” 

They were all about to move when Lee spoke up “Guys Ava Mercer was adopted and her biological mothers name is Carol Poluso”

“So?” Jubal spoke to Lee as he made his way to Lee’s computer 

“So Carol Pulso filed a sexual assault allegation against Keith Gilroy in 95 and then withdrew it” 

Jubal spun around to face Kelly when he heard her speak “Because Gilroy wrote her a cheque for two hundred grand” 

Jubal started playing with the pencil again as he spoke “So wait Ava’s biological mother worked for Gilroy in 95, claimed he sexually assaulted her and then that very same year gave birth to Ava. The same young woman that Gilroy was courting in the weeks prior to his death…..Ava Mercer is Gilroy’s daughter”

Maggie couldn’t stop the small smile she had on her face, she loved getting to watch Jubal when he was working like this, it was amazing. She had always admired the way his mind worked like this but now she got to enjoy it even more as that was her man showing why he was one of the best at his job. She loved how his mind worked at times but now she was getting to admire the way that he stood up that little bit taller, his hands on his hips, his sleeves rolled up, tapping his fingers on his belt, she realised she was in trouble as she was totally falling for this man. She also had to hide a chuckle when Jubal called it ‘courting’ OA, Stuart and Emily were also trying to hide their chuckles. Maggie’s thoughts were interrupted by Ian

“Hey Jubal I've got audio here from the bug in Gilroy’s car, he’s changing his will so that a big chunk of it will go to…” Ian is silent as he listens to the audio “Ava Mercer” 

“Well that is an interesting piece of news. Some might call that motive” Jubal turned to face Maggie and OA “Maggie,OA go talk to Gilroy’s lawyer see what he has to say about the will change”. 

Maggie and OA headed to the lawyers office, he informed them that Ava made Gilroy want to prove that he was truly trying to become a better man. The lawyer also tells them that Ava had no idea that the fifty million dollars was being left to her and that she was unaware that Gilroy was her father. When asked the lawyer tells them that the will change was never signed so the money goes to his foundation still. Maggie calls Jubal putting it on speaker so that OA can hear 

“Jubal, Ava Mercer had no idea Gilroy was her father and the money was left to his foundation not her”

“We know. Guy’s go pick up Lila Robbins”

“The head of his foundation?”

“Ian traced the photo of you and it lead him to Lila Robbins cloud account. And he found audio from the bug that proved that Lila knew Gilroy was planning on changing his will but that he hadn’t signed it yet”

“So she thought killing him now would ensure the money would still go to the foundation” Maggie now couldn't wait to arrest Lila 

“Yeah. Go and get her guys” 

With that Jubal ended their call, he felt relieved, they had caught the killer and the person who had hired the killer which meant that Maggie was safe, now all he needed was news on Kristen and he could relax. Maggie and OA arrested Lila Robbins, she informed them while arresting her that she was also one of Gilroy’s victims. They brought her in and Maggie and OA had joined Jubal, Stuart and Emily in the JOC, Maggie was leaning on the desk beside Jubal with OA, Stuart and Emliy standing facing them. She had just informed them about Lila being one of Gilroy’s victims when Isobel walked in so Stuart, Emily and OA turned to face her

“Quick announcement everyone. I just spoke with Kristen’s doctors and she is out of surgery and on track to make a full recovery” 

Everyone in the JOC starts clapping and you can see the tension leave people's bodies as Jubal stands up “Okay guys lets not jinx it, save the applause for when Kristen walks back in here” Stuart tells them he's going to head to the hospital and sit with Kristen until she wakens but OA shouted at him to wait a few minutes for him. Jubal turns to face Maggie and Maggie looks at the band on his wrist 

“You ready to part ways with the band” 

Jubal nodded but he was surprised when Maggie reached over taking the band off his wrist for him and throwing it in to the bin, no one noticed her actions, well no one except for Isobel who was standing off to the side watching them. OA turned to Maggie and Jubal 

“Hey I'm going to head to the hospital to see Kristen you guy’s joining?”

“You go ahead with Stuart I’ll catch a ride there with Jubal… Hey OA before you go.. I want to apologise for being short with you on this case” 

OA shook his head hearing Maggie “No need to apologise, everything with Kristen affected us more than any of us wanted to admit.. but we are good Maggie don't worry” OA stepped forward and hugged Maggie before stepping back“Don't be long guy’s I'm sure that Kristen will be glad to see us all there” 

Maggie watched OA leave and she turned to face Jubal “Are you able to leave or do you have to stay on” 

Jubal shook his head “No if Isobel asks I’ll tell her that we all went to see Kristen but I don't think she'll ask, let me grab my jacket and keys and we can go” 

“I’ll wait for you at the elevator”

Maggie smiled softly as she made her way to the elevator, she knew that no one was going to ask about her getting a lift with Jubal as she still hadn't been given back her suv from it got hit so she had been getting lifts. It didn’t take Jubal long to join Maggie as he lay his hand on her lower back as they stepped on to the elevator, both still unaware that Isobel was watching them, she was starting to wonder if something was going on with Jubal and Maggie or had what had happened with Kristen just made the team act that way as she had noticed they had all been hugging more throughout this case. 

Maggie and Jubal were travelling in a comfortable silence towards the hospital with Jubal driving until he reached over laying his hand on Maggie’s knee gently 

“You want to tell me what was going on that you were being short with OA?”

Maggie turned her head to face Jubal she knew that he wouldn't just take the reason she had given OA, she lay her hand on his, she noticed the red mark on his wrist from the band and she ran her thumb gently over it 

“I’ve been afraid to even look at Kristen, I didn’t protect her and she almost died Jubal, I felt so powerless. I’ve no idea what to even say to her, will she even want to see me?” 

Jubal had never seen Maggie so uncertain about something before, here she was looking after him most of this case and yet she was struggling herself. He was really falling more in love with this woman the more time they got together alone, her touch was so gentle on his wrist but he turned his hand around to take her hand in his and he entangled their fingers 

“Mags I promise you that Kristen will not blame you for what happened, what happed to her wasn’t your fault. And of course she is going to want to see you, I've seen how close you and Kirsten have gotten lately, she looks up to you. You don’t have to say anything special to her just be there for her that will mean more than anything else” 

Maggie had no idea how Jubal was able to calm her down so easily, she was still nervous about seeing Kristen but she also was sure now that she had to go and see her. It had been easier for her throughout this case to focus on helping Jubal but she realised that she owed OA an apology and owed Jubal the truth. She squeezed Jubal’s hand gently and lifted his arm as she kissed the red mark on his wrist

“Thank you……….for just being you” she knew Jubal was going to ask what she was thanking him for she decided to get ahead of him. 

Maggie hates having to let go of Jubal’s hand but they pulled into the hospital and she knows that OA and Stuart are going to be there s they have to be careful. When they arrive at Kristen’s ward OA is sitting there and tells them that they can only go in one at a time and Stuart is in with her right now. OA and Jubal start talking, about what Maggie can’t be sure as her attention is focused on Stuart standing at the end of Kristen’s bed. He’s moving from one foot to the other and laying his hand on the back of his neck, Maggie can’t hear what he is saying but she can tell that he is nervous. This confirms to Maggie that Stuart definitely has feelings for Kristen so she can only imagine how he must have felt, she thinks if that were Jubal and she can’t she has to shake the images from her mind. Stuart comes over to Maggie and smiles softly 

“Kristen is asking to see you next” 

Stuart goes to keep on walking but Maggie puts her hand on his shoulder and stops him “If you need anything, even just to talk call me, no matter what time I’ll answer” 

Stuart watches Maggie for a minute and he’s sure that from their conversation before Kristen got injured that Maggie knows he has feelings for Kristen. He nods his head as he doesn't trust his voice right now. Maggie squeezes his shoulder gently before she walks over to Kristen’s bed and she sat down on the chair beside the bed 

“You look good” 

“That’s a lie. I just look better than the last time you say me”

Maggie chucked softly but she had tears in her eyes as she looked at Kristen as she was still blaming herself “How are you feeling”

Kirsten watched Maggie for a minute clearly thinking about her answer before speaking “I don't know. People keep asking me that and I just…….I don't think they really want to know” 

Maggie took Kristen’s hand in hers “I really want to know.. What’s going on?”

“It's just lying there..bleeding like that…I was so scared Maggie” 

Maggie squeezed Kristen’s hand gently “You know it’s completely normal to have been scared, anyone would have been scared in that situation. Hell I was scared and I wasn't the one injured” 

Kristen squeezed Maggie’s hand gently “I'm still really really scared Maggie”

Maggie moved her chair closer to the bed “I'm here. You aren't going through any of this alone, me, the team” Maggie looked behind her to see Stuart, OA and Jubal standing together “we are all here for you. And anything you need you just tell me okay? Ill do whatever I can to help you” 


End file.
